Jaroslav Levinsky is a good doubles player (currently no.87 - reached No.24 in 2007). He also knows Marcos' game. They actually played together the AMS Rome in 2007 where they suffered a second-round loss to Hanley and Ullyett. It was a close match...

JOHANNESBURG: Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis proved too strong for Andrew Anderson and beat the local qualifier 6-4 6-2 in the South African Open on Monday.

The eighth-seed made Anderson pay for a host of unforced errors and overwhelmed the 25-year-old with his more powerful baseline play. After being sidelined for much of last season with wrist and back injuries, Baghdatis said he was still trying to find his comfort zone.

"The venue is great and the support was very good, but I did not have that much fun out there because I didn't play very well" said the Cypriot, who is trying to work his way back up the rankings after slipping to number 100 at the end of 2008.

"After a back injury, it is not that easy. But it's just a matter of time, getting time on my feet and finding my rhythm."

Fourth-seeded Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez bowled over Germany's Bjorn Phau 6-4, 6-3. Sixth-seed Ivan Navarro was the only seed to fall on a day on which just six singles matches were played.

Navarro lost to lowly South African Rik de Voest, number 162 in the world and a wildcard entrant, 6-3, 6-4.

The South African Open is making a return to the ATP Tour after an absence of more than a decade.

Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus cruised through his opening round in straight sets, dispatching wildcard Andrew Anderson in just under an hour and a half.

The match was not as easy as it appeared it would be on paper. Anderson, a South African wildcard and not ranked in the top 1000 in the world, should have been easy pickings for an experienced player like Baghdatis, but the South African actually managed to secure a break in each set. His serving was not nearly good enough to keep up with Baghdatis, however.

The Cypriot broke Anderson five times, twice in the first set and another three times in the second, but Baghdatis was not without problems of his own. He hit a slew of unforced errors, and he somewhat struggled on his own serve. While Anderson converted just two break points, he had seven other chances to do so.

Baghdatis’ performance could be attributed to opening round nerves. He was in Melbourne just a week ago, competing (well) at the Australian Open. He will need to pick up the pace as his opponents get more difficult, or an upset could be on the horizon.